August 22, 2003	Friday	Jumadi-us-Sani 23, 1424

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, Aug 21: MMA’s secretary-general Maulana Fazlur Rahman on Thursday asked the government to finalize the proposed constitutional package on the agreed points of the Legal Framework Order (LFO) latest by Aug 25 and bring it to the National Assembly by Aug 28.

If this was not done within the prescribed dates, then at least he (Maulana Fazl) will not be available for taking part in the dialogue, he warned.

According to sources close to the MMA leader, in a telephonic conversation with PML-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the Maulana said the government had delayed the promised constitutional package enough and caused a constitutional deadlock in the country.

He said: “If the proposed constitutional package was not presented in the assembly by the dates indicated, I will not be available for participating in any negotiations after that”.

The sources said the Maulana was scheduled to go abroad by the end of this month.

Meanwhile, there was an unconfirmed report that Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Jamali had had a meeting with Maulana Fazlur Rahman at the resident of Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain on Thursday before he left for Saudi Arabia.

The MMA leader, who arrived here late on Wednesday evening and could not attend the National Assembly session, left for his native D.I. Khan on Thursday and, therefore, was not available to confirm or deny the report.

MMA’s vice-president Qazi Hussain Ahmed, who earlier in the day received Chaudhry Shujaat at his residence, when asked for a confirmation of the Fazl-Jamali meeting, said: “I am not aware of any such meeting, although the Maulana usually remains in touch with me about such happenings.”

Talking to Dawn about his meeting with Chaudhry Shujaat, he said: “As you know the PML-Q leader is not in good health these days, still he came to me and requested to help find a way out of the constitutional impasse.”

He said the government was ready to extend legal help to the MMA and would like to send senator S.M. Zafar for the purpose as a first step to review the situation and sort out the differences on the question of LFO.

Chaudhry Shujaat, he said, also stressed the need of creating understanding outside the assembly before presenting the constitutional amendments in parliament.

Qazi Hussain Ahmed said that on his part, he reiterated the stated position of the MMA on the LFO. He reminded the PML-Q president that the opposition was not ready to accept Gen Musharraf as president-in-uniform even for a day nor were we ready to accept the National Security Council as a supra-constitutional body.

The MMA leader said he told Chaudhry Shujaat that “we have not closed our doors on constructive dialogue” but it was the ruling party leadership which tried to sabotage it.

A press release issued by Chaudhry Shujaat’s office said: “The PML leader in his meeting with Qazi Hussain Ahmed stressed the need for ending the deadlock in the government-opposition dialogue, and said both sides should avoid issuing offensive statements.”

During the meeting, which continued for about half an hour, Chaudhry Shujat said controversial statements encouraged those elements who did not want political stability and were a hurdle in the country’s progress.

Both the leaders agreed that there was a need of taking constitutional opinion on certain articles of the LFO so that, remaining within the Constitution, the issues could be resolved amicably.